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Biographical Notes — Dr. Axel Meisen

Axel Meisen was appointed as president and vice-chancellor of Memorial University in September 1999. Prior to joining Memorial, Dr. Meisen was a professor of chemical engineering at the University of British Columbia (UBC) where he also served two terms as dean of the Faculty of Applied Science and, earlier, in other administrative capacities. Dr. Meisen has worked as a special adviser to Methanex Corporation in Vancouver, an engineer with Imperial Oil Ltd. and as a consultant to national and international petroleum and chemical companies. He also taught chemical engineering at McGill University.

Dr. Meisen holds a PhD in chemical engineering from McGill University in Montreal (1970), and an M.M.Sc. from the California Institute of Technology (1966). He completed his B.Sc. degree at the Imperial College of Science and Technology in London, England (1965).

His areas of expertise include leadership of academic and professional organizations operating in national and international settings; development of major collaborative research and educational initiatives with private- and public-sector organizations; fund-raising; and technology related to the petroleum and chemical industries.

A fellow of the Canadian Academy of Engineering, Dr. Meisen is a professional engineer (P.Eng.) and European engineer (EurIng). He has been awarded the Medal of Distinction by the Government of Peru. He is a member of the Peruvian Academy of Engineering and a fellow of the Institution of Engineers of Ireland. He was also elected as a fellow of the Canadian Institute of Chemistry. He has received awards for his research papers from the Canadian Journal of Chemical Engineering, the Professional Service Award from the Association of Professional Engineers of British Columbia, and the ERCO Award for outstanding contributions to the field of chemical engineering.

Dr. Meisen has over 175 scholarly publications to his credit in national and international journals, and conference proceedings related to chemical engineering, education, international development and professional accreditation.

About Memorial University

The only university in Newfoundland and Labrador, Memorial is Atlantic Canada's largest university, with a student enrolment of approximately 16,000 and faculty and support staff of over 2,000. It has campuses in St. John's and Corner Brook (Newfoundland), Harlow (England) and a language institute on the French island, Saint-Pierre. A comprehensive university, Memorial University provides its students with a liberal education and strong professional competencies. Its 50,000 graduates are highly valued nationally and internationally. Research and scholarly activities are broad-based, while focusing on Newfoundland and Labrador's wealth in culture, natural resources and professionalism.

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